Timeline
This has been a long game with many varied incidents occuring. This timeline should, ideally, serve to provide some context for situations that have occurred, and hopefully spur memory. 'Game I: Invincible' 03/19/2011, 11:00AM GMT-5 -- Cameras on and rolling; The very start of game. 03/19/2011, 12:00AM GMT-5 -- 03/19/2011, 12:06AM GMT-5 -- Two hour timespan passes in six minutes. 03/19/2011, 3:07AM GMT -5 -- WBNS-10 TV airs the following news story: "Just a few hours ago, a surprising confrontation broke out on the northeast side of Columbus, when an unknown number of individuals engaged conflict that one eyewitness describes only as 'a warzone.' "Police have cordoned off the epicenter of the confrontation and have refused to disclose further information or comment, pending a thorough investigation of what exactly transpired. "The Holden Neighborhood, as the area has been called since its purchase by Alexander Holden in 1973, has largely been inhabited only by drifters and squatters. The Ferdinand-Benedict Foundation, which gained the rights to the land after Holden's death in '83, has refused to sell the area for more industrialized development. Little in the way of renovation and restoration efforts have been enacted on the part of the Foundation, resulting in the steady increase of transients in the area." -- Rinoa "Ghost-Hand" MacCleod, Solomon Caine, and Rhodes Pool engaged in epic combat under the earth in a place that should not have (and apparently didn't) exist. There, they found themselves saddled with an impossible child, as well as a trio of artifacts that seem to be literally older than dirt -- Not to mention equally impossible. Reality seems kind of broken, now, and Moebius seems to have left them high and dry. 03/20/2011 -- "Federal Agents" investigate the Holden Estate in the aftermath of the conflict the night before. Rhodes, Rinoa, and Solomon investigate the home of Hoban Jones, finding the place in a whirlwind of a messy state. They dig through the place in-depth and eventually find some of Hoban's journals, which seem to indicate that he believed he was slowly losing his mind -- When, in reality, he was having intensely prophetic visions about the Metis Cub. Outside of Hoban's home, Rinoa spots, entirely by chance, a truly majestic pimp and what clearly is his chief lieutenant; She is overheard as saying, "That is not '''a normal pimp." Solomon is emailed by Jason Rogers (jrogers@magadoninc.com), a representative of Magadon Pharmeceuticals. Solomon meets with him at Outlands, with Rhodes and Rinoa in the crowd waiting as backup. A $5000 deal is offered as up-front payment to investigate a neo-Nazi group in the Springfield, OH area, with an additional $5000 upon satisfactory completion of the investigation. A bonus of $7500 would be supplied if information on the base of operations for a violent, volatile group of backwoods yokels could be provided. Rinoa sees the pimp from outside of Hoban Jones' house off to one side, complete with his retinue of bodyguards, and seeks audience with the now-identified "Big Money Ho Ridah." Rhodes picks a Chop-Socky fight with some lazy-eye looking motherfucker, and all hell breaks loose in Outlands as a number of individuals suddenly shift into their Black Spiral Dancer Crinos forms. Rinoa and Rhodes suffer nearly fatal wounds during the ensuing melee, but manage to kill one of the offenders. Jason Rogers kills another one of them, and flees the scene. Big Money's chief lieutenant, a man named "Trigger," tackles a Black Spiral Dancer out the backdoor of the club and gains a Phyrric victory with his own death, sacrificing himself to kill the Black Spiral. Cupcaake, Big Money's toy poodle, is unharmed. '''03/21/2011 -- Rinoa seeks help from The Sept of Quiet Call -- A group of Garou based in Gooddale Park, Columbus, OH. The Metis Cub's parents are found to have come from this Sept, and the child is placed into their care. In exchange for aid in the general maintenance duties of the Sept's caern, as well as the return of the Metis Cub, they agree to take in Solomon and Rhodes, and treat the latter's wounds. A rather haunting eulogy is given by Caroline Brooks for the Metis Cub's fallen parents. 04/18/2011, approximately 8:00PM, GMT -5 -- The forces arrayed against the Sept of Gaia's Flame gathered at The Drowning Scotsman. Conversation was brief, and primarily limited to the upcoming battle. Of all those present, the only one who seemed reluctant was Finnegan O'Tolley, who believed himself lacking sufficient prowess for combat, when compared to the rest of the party. As a result, Rhodes introduced Finnegan to an interesting drinking ritual--I'll not bother with the details, but suffice to say it was amusing. At 11:00PM Local Time, the bar rapidly emptied as the strike teams went to their designated points of entry into John Bryan State Park. The party traveled with Simon Hoare and his Dies Ultimae contingent to strike from the direction of Clifton, straight to the heart of the cairn, as planned. Resistance from the Sept of Gaia's Flame was reasonably as expected. Scattered packs were taken down by the combined forces without mercy or hesitation and, in short enough order, the party descended into the enemy's den. The party proceeded through the physical world, instead of the umbra. In this, stealth was paramount and (excluding an incident with Rhodes accidentally peeing into a rotted corpse's mouth) flawless. In the tunnels leading to the heart, the party made two interesting discoveries. Firstly, a seemingly powerful avatar of a Get of Fenris totem, Firedrake, guarded the final decent into the heart itself. Secondly, they found a rear entry. The party deliberated on the course of action to take and, finding discretion to be the better part of valor, they took the latter path and entered the nexus of power at the seat of the mystical site. What they encountered was disturbing, to say the least. Maximilian Shulz and Lukas Muller both were present, in their Homid forms, apparently aiding in a ritual enacted by a Crinos-form trio of what seemed to be Theurges. In addition to these, there also were three Crinos-form warriors, each armed with a silver klaive. The ritual's purpose was glaringly obvious. A large, silvery/blue portal dominated the cairn's heart. A large-ish stone sat in front of the portal, engraved with a glyph that glowed with a similar, if softer, silvery/blue glow. According to both Rinoa and Finnegan, the portal was something called a moon bridge--Essentially, a gateway of folded point space-time. The stone was a Pathstone, something apparently necessary to the formation of any moon bridge. The presence of the moon bridge, in and of itself, presented dangerous possibilities. However, these were not the most disturbing factors in the heart. Strapped to Lukas Muller's back was a weapon that, by all accounts, seemed to be a near-duplicate of Rhodes' sword, or at least crafted in a similar style.. Only it was made of some unidentifiable black metal that absorbed the light from around it, with rising-and-falling, tortured and ethereal faces visible. On Maximilian's back was a weapon whose appearance dwarfed Rhodes and Lukas' weaponry--Made in a similiar style, but far more massive in size. Each of these weapons resonated with a distinctly tainted, deathly note that was more felt than seen. And the glyph carved into the Pathstone? That bore an eerie resemblance to the characters in Solomon's book. As Rinoa took the time to line up a sniper rifle shot on one of the defenders, and Ashe gathered energy to blanket the area that would be their battlefield, Maximilian acted in a most unexpected fashion--He drew the sword at his back and thrust it into the moon bridge, apparently tainting it with that necrotic resonance. Following this, he drove the weapon down into the Pathstone, which, instead of shattering, seemed to enhance the new energies coursing through the moon bridge. To make an already lengthy-story short, the battle began seconds later. Maximilian and the Theurges disappeared into the space-time rift, while Lukas and the two remaining Crinos-form Garou engaged the party directly. The battle was swift, brutal, and bloody. In the end, Ashe claimed Lukas' sword and its former possessor was bound, while Rhodes and Solomon had simultaneous flashes of insight--Likely courtesy of Moebius Web--regarding the moon bridge. Rinoa, not privy to this information, was soon enlightened: "Follow the silver-lined path." The cavern, at this point, was absolutely quaking with energy and seemed to threaten to collapse on them all. Acting of his own initiative, Rhodes knocked Finnegan out from behind, and the party dragged both he and Lukas through the portal, chasing after Maximilian and, one hopes, taking the next step in their destinies. --Unknown to the Party, the depleted forces at the Sept of Quiet Call were under intense assault at this time.. By Black Spiral Dancers, of the Hive of the Shattered Talon, in Johnstown, OH. The battle went poorly, and resulted in Connor and Veronica Porter being abducted. 04/18/2011, approximately 12:30PM, GMT -5 -- The Party follows the Moon Bridge to its ultimate destination.. .. A valley, hidden deep in what seems to be a jungle, with them placed atop a truly gigantic temple in a Mesoamerican style. Blah blah -- I'll fill in more details later -- the Party enters the Temple, and they face off at an apparent control room of some sort. In the center of the room, amidst the intricate machinery, there is a large, floating crystal with a golden box contained within. The battle is furious, with Maximilien warping and twisting with clearly unnatural energies until, at the battle's climax, Ashe maneuvers to strike through the crystal and into the box. Rhodes and Solomon experience flashes of insight and a sudden dilation of time relative to themselves and, with stunning speed and accuracy, Solomon fires a .50cal round straight through Maximilien's head -- And Rhodes drives his blade into the crystal near-simultaneously with Ashe's. A bright flash of light rockets out from the box, seeming to annihilate Maximilien's corpse in the wave of energy.. And all other parties involved feel a sharp, surging pain soaring up and down their nerves. After a second stretching into eternity, they all lose consciousness, the afterimages of light still dancing through their nearly catatonic bodies.. 06/01/2011 -- The Party leaves South America 06/03/2011, approximately 12:00-12:30AM GMT -6 -- Misa Walker's capture by Technocratic agents interrupted quite suddenly by Peter Prince. He is taken into custody, and she flees the scene at his insistence. 06/04/2011 -- The Party arrives in New Orleans, LA, United States. 06/05/2011 -- The Party begins to plan on how to retrieve Peter. 06/07/2011, approximately 10:00PM GMT -6 -- The Party raids the space station, and retrieves peter. 06/08/2011, approximately 2:00AM GMT-5 -- Manhattan goes a-'splodie boom-boom. 06/09/2011, approximately 2:00PM GMT-5 -- Peter heads to New Orleans to retrieve Silas Jaerjan's journal. Phillip Stahl returns to the Sons of Ether. The Party begins travelling to Columbus. 06/10/2011, approximately 3:00AM GMT-5 -- The Party arrives in Columbus after a fairly uneventful drive in a stolen car. 06/15/2011 -- Between this point and the one previous, the Party met back up with Charles Richter, and set plans to go to Johnstown to retrieve Connor. Rinoa spent time with the Sept of Quiet Call and did a great deal of introspection after the massive amount of collateral damage caused by the space station crashing into Manhattan, and additionally arranged for Johann Garrison to set in motion a call for a Grand Concolation of the Garou. Of further note, Rhodes was dropped by tranqs when he was being a stubborn ass at Quiet Call, Misa's "boyfriend" Jimmy was commited to a mental health ward, Charles informed Misa she can't outrun a Camaro, and Terasu stopped a gang-rape. 06/19/2011 -- The Party ventures forth to Johnstown. 06/23/2011 -- The Party (excluding Charles Richter) is abducted by the Technocracy. 06/29/2011 -- The Party (excluding Charles Richter, Terasu, and Caroline Brooks) regains consciousness in the Technocratic facility. 07/01/2011, approximately 2:35AM GMT-7, 7:45AM Mars time -- Rhodes, Solomon, Misa, Rinoa, and Kyle Haverson's squad land on Mars. 07/02/2011, approximately 6:00PM GMT-7 -- Those who remain from the Mars expedition return through a barely-functioning Quantum Gateway, having lost nearly a full day in transit. Additionally -- Hey, look! Rhodes has a new body! 'Game II: Locking Up the Sun ''(Tentative title) In the wake of the Year of Great Change ''Note: I'm open to nomenclature changes for this., many of the political boundaries across the world have been rewritten, and the dynamics of international power have shifted dramatically. What follows is a point-by-point breakdown of the most major, sweeping changes; They are by no means indicative of the full scope of this new world. ''GM Note: This is a living document and addition -- I will be adding to it as I have additional information to add. Changes can and likely will occur. Consider this to be "teaser" information and enjoy. :) '''The United States The events of the Great Change seem to have been first triggered within the United States and, subsequently, this nation has experienced the most alteration to its existence. As a result, this once- first world power has been relegated to the economic and military second string. The Fall of New York, as well as the secession of El Rojo Sol's empire, El Dominio de Cristo el Ardiente Cuchilla, are the largest points of impact, but by no means are they the only ones. The only real saving grace of this formerly mighty nation, at this point, is the near-total takeover by the formerly shadow organization known as the Technocracy. 'State of the Union' During the latter months of the Year of Great Change, most of the population in the New England and Midwest areas was subjected to mandatory evacuation and displacement into the Great Plains region. Ten years later, these people are still eking out what manner of existence they can, in a desperate bid to rebuild the lives they had lost. While the United States continues to put up a front of prosperity on the global stage, the truth of the matter is that the support of these people has driven the United States' economic power into an ever-increasing downward spiral. Economists in the know have conjectured that, unless a major turn of events occurs, the viability of the former superpower to sustain itself will continue its rapid fall to 0%. Due to the economic instability, the United States operates primarily as a military state, with all democratic operations on indefinite suspension. General NAME is currently the de facto head of state and chief officer of all United States operations within the North American theater. He is supported in this role by Generals NAME, NAME, NAME, and NAME -- Their areas of operation are detailed elsewhere. The Technocracy has three representatives working in conjunction with the Defense Board. NAME AND TITLE of the New World Order, NAME AND TITLE of the Syndicate, and NAME AND TITLE of the Void Engineers. These three oversee the interests and needs of the Technocracy from the United States, as indicated by the greater Technocratic Advisory Council, and coordinate Enlightened operations with United States military and domestic infrastructure. 'New England and the Midwest' The entirety of the New England states, as well as the vast majority of what was once the American Midwest, are forbidden areas; They are, in fact, nigh-inhospitable wastelands. The only inhabitants of this desolation are the shambling corpses of those who fell during the rushes of undead out of Manhattan Island. These creatures exhibit the same classical symptoms one might expect from zombies, including a parasitic bite that transforms the victim into one of the walking dead. Unlike classical zombies, however, this appears to be a latent virus; Until the point of death, the individual is merely a carrier.. But within a few hours of death, the individual inevitably rises again to terrorize the living with a ravenous, insatiable hunger. Though the Progenitors have applied a vast sum of resources to the investigation of a cure, there has yet to be seen a relief from this lingering menace. The Void Engineers' Border Defense Corps has, as a result, been set in place as a hard physical cordon to contain the spread of undeath and limit it from advancing further. Supporting the BDC's perimeter are the men and women of the United States' armed forces, with a large portion of the military on permanent deployment to this barrier. 'The West Coast' A great deal of the land that once was the states of Washington, Oregon, California, and portions of Nevada have joined in El Rojo Sol's mass secession from the United States, citing "Anglo-Saxon, Jewish, African, and Asian oppression of God's true chosen." Families and organizations (many of them criminal) engaged in an exodus throughout the United States and Mexico, flocking to El Rojo Sol's banner. Initially, the United States engaged in a swift reprisal against the forces of Rojo Sol who, at the time, were limited to the Greater Portland Metropolitan Area. While they were considered an extremist group and treated with all due and necessary force, the combination of guerilla tactics, aggressive utilization hostage situations, and a near total disregard for civilian casualties made eliminating the group difficult. Given enough time, the United States' armed forces would likely have routed the organization and brought El Rojo Sol to justice. Unfortunately, the events on Manhattan Island and subsequent surge of undeath from the city's ruins required more immediate and intensive attention; It was by this providence, preached by Rojo Sol as a sign of God's anger and his holy vengeance against the lesser peoples, that the doctrine of supremacy of the Latino people was most facilitated. While Rojo Sol's technological infrastructure cannot even remotely compare with that of the United States, he makes up for this deficiency with sheer numbers and downright fanaticism. Those loyal to his cause will quite literally fight to the death for Rojo Sol's mission, and they are generally found to be all but immune to bribery or threats of bodily harm -- It is unknown at this time if this is a result of extreme fear or some form of supernatural mind control. More details on El Dominio de Cristo el Ardiente Cuchilla will appear the relevant wiki page, when it's created.